Electronics and semiconductors

The advancements in materials research and semiconductor technology have brought great changes to the way we live. They have driven developments in almost every aspect of our daily life – phones, smart wearables and toys, laptops, wireless networks, home infotainment systems, cars, and smart meters. 

The electronic display, data storage, and RF filter technology industries have rapidly advanced, and the rate of change continues to follow Moore’s law. Growth technologies now allow the deposition of multilayered structures with individual layers exhibiting film thickness from microns down to monolayers. 

Typical materials involved in advanced thin film devices are semiconductors, metal alloys, dielectrics, oxides, and polymers. This mandates accurate monitoring and control of the device parameters using multiple investigation techniques. Equally important is the fine control over the process materials, like CMP slurry, which is an indispensable part of any thin-film device manufacturing. 

Thin film-based devices are usually manufactured using a complex multistep fabrication process. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD)  are an integral part of any such manufacturing process to monitor and control critical thin film parameters at every step.  Electronic displays employ various technologies such as liquid crystals, pigment dispersions, quantum dots, and OLEDs. In most of these, the particle size and shape play an important role and need reliable characterization. In OLEDs, strict control over the polymer characteristics such as size and molecular weight is paramount to the display quality.